Warriors: Tales of the Past: LionClan
by xxouchibitmytonguexx
Summary: Lionkit listens closely as Greyjaw tells him a story of LionClan. The story of NightCatcher, the black lion. I suck at summaries :3 Rated T just to be safe. Only one of three fanfics I am in the midst of making. I will decide on the genre later.
1. Prologue

Prologue

Leopardkit opened her eyes and looked around the den. Everyone was already wide awake. Her littermates, Tigerkit and Lionkit, were wrestling over at the entrance to the waited patiently for the two of them to move so she could get through. Leopardkit noticed the bundle of herbs in Sweetflower's mouth. She immediately sniffed the air.

Borage leaves.

They were probably for Winterfire, who didn't have a lot milk when her kits were born yesterday.

Leopardkit ran over towards Sweetflower. She skidded to a halt in front of her brothers.

"Move," she ordered. Tigerkit and Lionkit stopped their playfighting. They took one look at Sweetflower and moved out of the way, only to resume their playfighting.

"Thank you young Leopardkit," Sweetflower purred. "You got those two rascals out of the way. But you shouldn't have used such a tone with them." Leopardkit dipped her head in embarassment. She was just trying to help... But there was still a chance to start off a good day~!

"Borage to help Winterfire?" she asked innocently. Sweetflower turned her head slightly to look at the small kit. Her piercing blue eyes seemed to dig into Leopardkit's soul.

"Yes," she meowed in surprise. "How did you know?"

"I smelled the air when you were stuck in the tunnel," shrugged Leopardkit. At this Sweetflower purred.

"You will make a great medicine cat." Before Leopardkit could say another word Sweetflower walked over to where Winterfire lay.

Leopardkit just stayed where she was, frozen to the ground. Sweetflower had said she would make a great medicine cat~! This was amazing~!

It took Leopardkit a moment or two to realize that Sweetflower was staring at her. Leopardkit cocked her head to the side in silent question.

"Are you going to help me make this poultice?" Sweetflower asked. Leopardkit jumped up in happiness and rushed over to help.

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Tigerkit stared at his sister with disbelief. She wanted to be a medicine cat? What was with that? Surely hunting and fighting for the clan as a warrior was a much more suitable choice.

He snorted in disgust and began cleaning his striped pelt. He and his littermates were named after the three great clans. LionClan, LeopardClan, and TigerClan. But why did he have to be named after TigerClan? Sure he looked alot like a tiger and all but... TigerClan was horrible~! Their entire history was filled with jealousy, greed, and deceit. Why did LionClan and LeopardClan get the amazing histories?

Tigerkit sighed and padded out of the nursery. It was times like these he went to see Fleetwhisker, the cat whom he wished to have mentor him in a moon's time.

Fleetwhisker was a gentle she-cat. She listened to Tigerkit's problems without complaint. Unlike the rest of the clan, Fleetwhisker hunted only at night. It made sense, seeing as her pitch black pelt blended in the best at that time.

Soon enough Tigertkit found her. She was resting beneathe High Rock, her pelt rising and falling softly.

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Lionkit ran around in circles outside the nursery. His siblings were too busy to play with him so Lionkit decided on a game of "chase your tail".

No matter what, Lionkit's tail remained out of reach. He growled and ran faster. Soon enough he became extremely dizzy and slowed his pace. Everything spun in circles.

Lionkit padded forward, unsure where he was heading. He was too dizzy to see straight. There seemed to be four elders dens and at least ten medicine cat dens.

Still the dark kit staggered forward only to fall with a loud thump after only afew short tail lengths.

"Ouch~!" a grumpy voice shouted in pain. Lionkit shook his head to clear away the dizziness. Mooneye glared at him from her pale green eye. The other one had been bitten out by a dog last moon, causing the she-cat to reitre to the elders den.

"Sorry~!" Lionkit said quickly. The she-cat simply grunted and went back to sleep. Lionkit was about to leave when a low, gruff voice stopped him.

"Lionkit is it?" Greyjaw's voice asked. Lionkit turned around to face the elder and dipped his head in respect.

"What is it?" the dark kit asked. Greyjaw purred at Lionkit's attempt at acting grown up.

"Would you like to hear a story young one?" Greyjaw asked. Lionkit's ears perked up and his tail flicked in excitement.

"Yes~!" Lionkit meowed loudly. But one thing bothered him. "Why did you ask me that after I fell on top of Mooneye?" After all, falling on an elder hardly deserved a story. At this Greyjaw's voice dropped to a whisper.

"Can you keep a secret?" He asked mysteriously. Lionkit firmly nodded his head. "Good. The truth is that I was waiting for a careless kit to fall on top of that grumpy fur ball." Greyjaw winked and Lionkit couldn't help but laugh. He doubted he would ever understand the elders.

"What was it I was about to tell you again?" The elder asked in sudden confusion. Lionkit rolled his eyes at Grayjaw's amnesia, forgetting to show respect.

"You were going to tell me a story," Lionkit purred. Greyjaw blinked in irritation.

"I knew that youngin'~!" Greyjaw protested. After a moment his eyes softened. "This was a story told to me by a Rouge." Lionkit's eyes widened in surprise. A Rouge? Lionkit was related to someone who listened to stories told by Rouge cats? Greyjaw seemed to understand what was going through Lionkit's mind because he immediately interupted those thoughts. "Indeed youngin'. I learned this story from your grandmother. Is there a problem with that?" Now Lionkit's eyes felt like they were going to pop from his skull. He was related to a Rouge? More importantly, Greyjaw had actually chosen a _Rouge_ to be his mate?

"Do you want to hear this story or not?" Greyjaw asked. Lionkit hesitated before answering. Did he really want to hear a story that was heard from a rouge? Then again, the fact that Greyjaw mated with a rouge meant that Lionkit himself was a rouge. Different emotions mixed within Lionkit. It took him a long time to realize that Greyjaw was staring at him expectantly.

"S-Sure," Lionkit muttered. Greyjaw seemed to understand the uncertainty that held the kit.

"Well then let me tell you the story about Nightcatcher, the dark prince of LionClan," Greyjaw began, his voice dropping to a low, soft voice that was often used for story telling. "It was many many seasons before the four clans walked the earth. The clans of the great cats were living in peace..."

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**Okay...... I would like to point something out. I am entirely aware that I capitalized some of the Rouge words but not all. Who cares. That was just cause I was not sure if I should or shouldnt capitalize them so I did both. AND AND AND This one is about LionClan as you may have guessed already...... Yes. His name is Lionkit even though he has a pitch black pelt. I just thought that dark would work better for description...... He is a Maine Coon if that explains it at all... Well half Maine Coon. His brother and sister didn't get that part.....**


	2. Chapter 1

**I must note something before you read. I dont know jack sh*t about lions. I searched stuff up on Google, but there was nothing. I tried to find out everything I could about Lion Cubs but all I found out is what they play with and most are slaughtered when there is a new leader of the pride.**

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Chapter One

Sundrop's eyes widened in shock. Her cub... It was... The cub was... Her cub was black~! Tears stung at Sundrop's eyes. Why? Why did it have to turn out like this? Her one and only cub...

"I won't tell," a voice soothed. Sundrop looked up at her brother, Goldengaze. "We must get the cub away from here." Sundrop gave a quick, abrupt nod before shakily standing up. She lowered her head to pick up her cub only to be intercepted by Goldengaze.

"I will carry him," he meowed. Sundrop didn't bother to argue. Anything to save her son.

Sundrop and Goldengaze padded silently out of the nursery. It was the middle of the night and the entire clan was fast asleep. Thornstar lay fast asleep on High Rock, his large form threatening to break the narrow rock. The silver moon hung low in the sky and millions of stars dotted the night. Trees swayed in the wind.

Sundrop froze, unable to take a step outside of the camp. She was at the entrance to camp, but she couldn't move.

"What is it?" Goldengaze asked through a mouthfull of fur. Sundrop slowly turned her gaze to her brother.

"Where will we take him?" she asked, fear rising in her voice.

At this Goldengaze froze too. Neither of them could abandon their clan, but at the same time both knew they couldn't leave the cub out in the wild. Goldengaze sat down in front of Sundrop and dumped the cub unceremoniously on the ground. Sundrop didn't even take notice of her cub.

"There is only one place that will accept him," whispered Goldengaze. Sundrop's eyes widened in surprise.

"No~!" She yowled in protest. Goldengaze flicked his tail across her mouth to remind her to be quiet. She settled down quickly enough. "No," she whispered again. "Not them. They can't have him."

"Would you rather he die like the rest of them?" spat Goldengaze. Sundrop hesitantly nodded her head in agreement.

"Can... Can I take him there myself?" Sundrop asked. Goldengaze hesitated before pushing the cub towards her.

"If you show the slightest sign of struggle then I will carry him instead," he said gently. Sundrop nodded, speachless. She still couldn't believe she would have to hand her cub over to _them. _It wasn't right, it was unnatural.

Sundrop followed her littermate out of the camp, her cub hanging from her jaws that gently bit down on his scruff.

At the entrance to the camp Farfire sat at sentry. Sundrop looked at Goldengaze curiously, wondering how they were to get past him. Before she could ask Goldengaze swiped a heavy blow to Farfire's skull, immediately knocking him unconcious. Sundrop almost gasped in surprise and fear, but the bundle of fur she held in her jaws prevented her from doing so.

The second Farfire was unconcious Goldengaze began running. Sundrop didn't hesitate to follow.

The forest outside of the camp was dark and eerie. Shadows jumped across the trees and the sound of the leaves rustling no longer sounded welcoming. It sounded like demons were chasing after her, only causing Sundrop to run faster. Soon she was passing Goldengaze, who was supposedly the fastest in LionClan.

"Stop~!" Goldengaze's voice shouted. Sundrop skidded to a hault. When she looked at the ground in front of her she realized she and her cub had almost fallen into the gorge. Goldengaze caught up with her, his breathing heavy.

"Thanks," muttered Sundrop, embarassment overflowing in her emotions.

"Come," Goldengaze ordered. Sundrop followed him past Four Trees. Wind ruffled her pelt and she shuddered in fear of where she was going.

"Goldengaze?" Sundrop asked. Her voice was muffled by her son's fur but Goldengaze seemed to understand her. "Are you sure they will accept him?" Goldengaze's eyes softened.

"If they don't I will kill every last one of them," Goldengaze purred. The rest of the trip was travelled in silence, interupted by the lion cub's occasional mewling, if you could even call it that. It was a rough meow, on the verge of growling. But that was just the sound every lion cub made.

Soon enough the three of them reached their destination. The land here was flat and windy. Despite that fact Sundrop knew of the secret underground tunnels that the Night Walkers used for easy travel. Every clan knew of this underground world.

"State your business," a rough female voice ordered. Sundrop put down her cub.

"I have a cub of the night I wish to save," she said calmly, repeating the words of the night ceremony. A black tiger with silver stripes padded out from a bush. Sundrop didn't doubt the fact that there was a tunnel in there.

"It seems you speak the truth, day cousin," the tiger acknowledged. "I am Foreststalker, the eye of night."

"I am Sundrop and this is my brother, Goldengaze," Sundrop replied formally.

"From here on out I will take your son," Foreststalker said coldly. "I will give him to one of the Night Mothers. They will nurse him until he is old enough to help the clan. Do you wish to name him before you part?" Sundrop hesitated. She knew exactly what she wanted him to be named.

"Nightcatcher," Sundrop answered quietly. Foreststalker was about to leave when Sundrop stopped her.

"What is it?" the young tiger growled.

"Can I visit him every once in a while?" she asked. Foreststalker thought about it for a moment.

"If it is your greatest desire you may visit him every full moon," she replied. "Now go. An abandoned lion cub of golden colours awaits your arrival." With that Foreststalker disappeared.

Sure enough, on the way back to camp Sundrop and Goldengaze ran into an abandoned lion cub. This one was not the colours of the night. Sundrop adopted the cub, and they lived the life of a lie. That cub would be her child to hide the shame of Sundrop.

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**Next chapter will be the start of Nightcatcher's POV. Please only review if I can reply to your reviews. Cause I really want to be able to answer questions other people have.**


	3. Chapter 2

**AND NOW WE FINALLY GET PRETTY LITTLE NIGHTCATCHER'S POV~! I cant wait~!....................... What am I saying? Im the one writing it? But who cares. I always have been a little self-centered :3 Oh yeah... Do any of you know how hard it is to right a story about cats but not use the terms 'she-cat' or 'tom' or 'kit'? It isnt very easy. So sorry if I make any mistakes. And if I make everything too detailed then SORRY~! I just wanted to get things cleared up before they get interesting.**

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Chapter Two

Nightcatcher grew up quickly. During his time as a cub he got into various problems. Ten days after he came to NightClan, that was what the Night Folk called it, he got into trouble three times. The first was for jumping on Rosepetal's tail and biting down on it. That had got him a growl and threat from the old Night Mother. Another thing he had done was trick Whitetail into eating rabbit droppings, insisting they were a rare kind of delicious berry. But the one everyone remembered the most was when Nightcatcher went up to Mistystar and complained about how the leader wasn''t very 'pretty' and that she had bad breathe, or when he pointed out innocently that she was really fat for a leader. Of course he wasn't punished or anything, being only a young cub. But ever since that incident Mistystar had always held a grudge for the young lion.

Nightcatcher woke up to the sounds of snoring. He stretched, letting a long yawn escape him, and padded outside of the den. From what he had heard this clan was the most easy going out of all of them. Apparently others clans had this thing called 'apprenticeship' where they strained hard day in and day out to learn to fight and hunt. Nightcatcher himself taught himself to fight and hunt. In NightClan one taught his or her self how to live on their own. If they didn't they usually ended up dead. Perhaps it was a little harsh, but that was how NightClan worked. If one was too old or sick to fight then of course someone did it for them. But no one was ever sick and there was usually never an elder who wouldnt follow their pride to the death.

Thundershadow was grooming herself near Jagged Rock. Although her pelt was pitch black with a silver tipped tail, everyone understood she was a leopard. Why? She didn't have the fluffy cheeks that the tigers had. Everyone, including Nightcatcher, was perplexed at the thought of a leopard with no spots, but Thundershadow usually harmed any who pointed it out. Nightcatcher had learned the hard way when he was a small cub.

Nightcatcher snuck up behind Thundershadow. He absolutely loved teasing the grumpy she-leopard.

He was right behind her now.

Then he was jumping.

Nightcatcher landed on Thundershadow, making her yell in anger.

"Got you~!" Nightcatcher purred. Thundershadow growled in anger and twisted around, trying to get the playfull lion off of her back. Nightcatcher knew it ticked her off, but that was exactly why he was constantly bothering her. It was just so easy~!

Finally Thundershadow's rage was at it's limit. She rolled onto her back so quickly that Nightcatcher didn't have time to jump away. He hit the ground with a thud and grunted in pain when Thundershadow got off of him.

"That should teach you," she purred with pride at beating the young lion.

Nightcatcher sat down in front of Thundershadow, giving her a look that said he was sorry, but in all reality he was watching his friend, Weaselflight, was sneaking up behind her. Nightcatcher's eyes dare not betray his friend's position.

Before Thundershadow realized that Weaselflight was going to team up with Nightcatcher, the two males attacked.

This time Thundershadow couldn't defend herself. It didn't take long for the two friends to pin her to the ground.

"Hah~!" Weaselwhisker laughed. "We win~! By the stars, Thundershadow~! Letting yourself get beat by two cubs, are you?" Nightcatcher locked eyes with his striped friend. Weaselwhisker was a snow white tiger with normal black stripes. Nightcatcher never really understood how he was valued as a Night Walker, but never dared question his friend. After all, his eyes were the same icy blue all members of NightClan had.

Nightcatcher was about to help Weaselwhisker in teasing Thundershadow, but a rough voice stopped him.

"Nightcatcher~!" It shouted. Nightcatcher turned to see Foreststalker standing there, the fur on her pelt rising. Nightcatcher's ears went flat against his head and he carefully padded over to the grumpy old she-cat.

"Yeah?" he asked.

"We are going hunting," Foreststalker meowed. It wasn't a request.

"But I am only three moons old~!" complained Nightcatcher. He was silenced with a glare.

"Three moons old is when a lion should learn to hunt~!" she snapped.

"But-" he was cut off yet again by the old tiger.

"Look. We aren't jungle folk. Here, where we live, there is small prey that even a three moon old lion like yourself could catch~!" Without another word she turned and walked towards the tunnel. Nightcatcher stopped complaining and stayed right behind her at all times. He didn't want to go to the surface world~! He liked it down here.

The tunnels that the two of them went through swerved this way and that, the path constantly dropping and rising. Eventually small holes appeared in the ceiling of the tunnel, each one shining a white light down. In most cat's minds it wold look eerie, but in Nightcatcher's mind the way the light shone down into the dark tunnel was beautifull.

Nightcatcher was still admiring the light that came through the holes in the tunnel when Foreststalker came to a hault.

"We're here," she beamed in happiness. It was the first time Nightcatcher had seen the old tiger so happy.

She moved out of the way and Nightcatcher saw what she thought so great.

The surface world.

It was nothing like Nightcatcher imagined it.

Grass swayed this way and that, each blade of it covered in a sparkly frost that glittered in the moon light. Yes the moon. It was this large silver orb in the sky that was surrounded by little silver stars. It didnt take a lot of knowledge to know what everything was. There were large violet and purple coloured flowers that covered the ground.

"You hear that?" Foreststalker asked, breaking the silence. Nightcatcher listened carefully. There was definately the sound of paw steps coming towards himself and Foreststalker.

He looked towards where the sound was coming from and gasped in awe.

A beautifull full grown lioness was walking towards himself and Foreststalker. But unlike all the cats of NightClan, this one was a brilliant gold and had deep amber eyes.

"How long has it been, Sundrop?" Foreststalker asked. The lioness purred and sat down to talk.

"Three moons," she laughed. "It has only been three moons since I saw my son. If you can't remember that then I suggest you become an elder."

"An elder? You forget how different our clan is from your own."

"Oh yes. Almost forgot about that," the golden lioness purred. Nightcatcher was still staring at the oddly coloured cat when Foreststalker spoke again.

"Nightcatcher, I would like you to meet your mother," Foreststalker purred. Nightcatcher's eyes widened their widest and he finally turned to look at Foreststalker.

"M-My mother?" Nightcatcher stuttered in disbelief. This golden lioness was his _mother?_ That couldn't be right. She had a _golden _pelt and _amber _eyes. This lioness' pelt had neither black nor white and her eyes were far from the icy blue every cat in NightClan had.

"Hello young Nightcatcher," the lioness purred. "I am Sundrop, your mother, and the one who has graced you with this name." Tears welled up in Nightcatcher's eyes.

"You mean you abandoned me onto some other clan!?" he screeched. How could such a cold creature be his mother?

"No wait I-" Sundrop protested, only to be cut off from Nightcatcher.

"I wish I hadn't been brought here~!"

Without another word, Nightcatcher ran away. Sundrop was about to chase after him but Foreststalker stopped her.

"I will talk to him," she assured the lioness. "In the mean time you must get back to your clan."

"Should I ever come back?" Sundrop asked, her voice filled with pain and sadness.

"Yes," Foreststalker soothed. "He will understand by then."

Sundrop nodded and turned to head back to camp while Foreststalker ran off in the direction that Nightcatcher had went in.

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Nightcatcher slowed to a stop, gasping for air. So that was what he was? Some dumb kit who was unloved and got dropped off onto another clan? Nightcatcher's heart felt torn.

A strip of warmth hit Nightcatcher's pelt and he turned his head to see a bright sphere of light rising over the horizon. It kind of hurt Nightcatcher's eyes but he ignored the pain. Never before had he seen something like this.

"It's beautifull huh?" a voice asked. Nightcatcher turned his head to see Foreststalker sitting beside him, staring at the strange ball of light.

"What is it?" asked Nightcatcher curiously.

"The sun," Foreststalker replied. "That there is what your mother was named after." Nightcatcher hung his head low and stared at the ground.

"She isn't my mother," he spat.

"Why not?"

"She abandoned me here," he hissed scornfully. Foreststalker sighed at the young lion's anger.

"Your mother saved your life," Foreststalker corrected. Nightcatcher finally managed to look at her.

"What do you mean?" he asked, the scorn not quite gone from his voice.

"Your mother took you to NightClan because her clan kills any lions who are born a strange colour," explained Foreststalker. "She only wanted you to live, even if it meant sacrificing your cub-hood." Now Nightcatcher was really confused.

"What do you mean?" he asked with fear.

"You may not realize it," began Foreststalker. "But NightClan is made up of wrongly coloured cats. Every last one of us has been simply abandoned here except for the few that were born into the clan. Other than you and your two friends, everyone else lacks joy and fun. Why? Our clan is the clan of assassins. We are hired by other clans to assassinate targets." Nightcatcher's jaw dropped in disbelief. The two of them sat in silence for a few more minutes.

"Why are you telling me this?" he finally managed to whisper.

"That will wait for another day," Foreststalker smiled. "In the meantime, we should be getting back to camp." Nightcatcher took one last glance at the rising sun before turning to follow Foreststalker back to camp.

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**Kind of a long chapter.... A very important one though. Not even kidding, this chapter is EXTREMELY important~! R&R Peoplez~! Sorry if the spelling isnt PERFECT~!**


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